Journal: observation visits

During the course of the project, each Advanced School will receive one observation visit from the University of Wolverhampton. Follow here a journal of the observation visits written by Diana Bannister.

Link observation visits

Link observation visits schedule 2013

UK: 12 June and 27 June

Czech Republic: 16 September

Finland: 23 September

France: 30 September

Norway: 14 October

Italy: 21 October

Cyprus: 11 November

Belgium: 18 November

Portugal: 13 January 2014

Ireland: 20 January 2014

Austria: 27 January 2014

Lithuania: 10 February 2014

Observation and documention

Observation and documentation of innovative practice (WP3)

The WP3 is led by the University of Wolverhampton and is focused on observing and documenting innovative practice involving ICT use in both Advanced Schools (AS) and Advanced Practitioner Schools (AP) in the network. The observation methodology includes various elements:

Telephone/Skype interviews with lead teachers

An audit of ICT implementation and use in the selected schools

Link observation visits with schools in 12 countries

Schools’ focus themes and STEPS plans

Case studies based on material provided by schools and their short videos.

As a result of this work, the project will be able to showcase teaching and learning practices, and document a range of successful strategies for mainstreaming that practice. This will help to consider how to take it to scale within a wider cohort of teachers and schools that will join the Living Schools Lab network in the second year of the project.

Telephone interviews

During February 2013 telephone interviews were organised with the lead teachers from Advanced Schools. The interviews have helped to collate information about how the school have developed a whole school approach to ICT deployment and use of technologies for learning and teaching. The summary of the interviews will be available within the interim report later in the year.

ICT Audit

The ICT audit was carried out through an online questionnaire which focused on the infrastructure, ICT equipment, learning spaces, staff skills and competences, CPD strategy, level of e-Maturity, and pedagogical use of ICT in and out of school for each of the selected schools (AS and AP). The audit was done in March-April 2013, based on a sub-set of questions from a recent, pan-European “Survey of Schools: ICT in Education”. The detail from the audit will also form part of the interim report. A preview of the ICT audit results is available here.

The same audit survey will be repeated during the course of the project to help identify trends.

Link observation visits

During the course of the project, each Advanced School will receive one observation visit from the University of Wolverhampton. Each visit will give the Advanced School the opportunity to showcase their practice in the use of ICT across the school. The purpose of the observation is to document innovative practice in schools and collate evidence which will help to inform future work.

Specifically, the main objectives of the link observation visits are:

To look at whole school development in the use and implementation of ICT

To look at practice in the two Advanced Schools and document ways of working that have been implemented across the school

To understand how effective practice in the use of ICT can be mainstreamed

These national visits are also used to organise focus groups meetings. The focus groups will have about 30 participants from both AS and AP. The focus groups will allow the observers to gather examples of best practice and ensure that local knowledge is networked across the various learning communities.

Schools’ focus themes and STEPS plans

Each Advanced School has been asked to identify a focus theme that they would like to develop and take forward during the course of the project. The selected themes are:

Interactive Technologies

1:1 devices

Collaborative Learning

Digital Content and Digital Textbooks

Learning Environments (Virtual)

Learning Spaces (Physical)

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

Technologies across the school

In the framework of the themes, schools work together discussing and collecting resources, practices, ideas, etc. The results will be presented to the rest of the network in webinars led by AS teachers.

Moreover, the network schools will create a ‘STEPS’ plan (Share, Teach, Evidence, Plan, Support) that provides for a framework for the project to help the teachers to gather evidence and enable them to share practice that could be upscaled or mainstreamed. STEPS offers a tool for AS to work with the AP regardless of the stage of whole school ICT development. STEPS helps to demonstrate practice at either classroom level or whole school level.

Case studies and videos

Based on the information gathered during the interviews, visits and surveys, the project will publish case studies showing the practices from different countries. The schools will also produce videos to demonstrate the use of ICT in their schools and this will support the professional development across the project.

Living Schools Lab is coordinated by European Schoolnet (EUN) and co-funded by the European Commission's 7th Framework Programme. This site reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.